because you've been credit-approved. we got everything in order so that we can move on the next place we found. which was clear on the other side of town. [ male announcer ] wells fargo. with you when you're ready to move. this morning on "world news now," breaking news. the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, osama bin laden, is dead after a u.s.-led operation to kill him. >> while american embassies worldwide are on alert for retaliation, crowds of people took their jubilation to the white house. it is monday, may 2nd. >> announcer: from abc news, this is "world news now." >> and good morning on this historic news morning, indeed. i'm rob nelson. >> absolutely. and i'm peggy bunker. it is the news that millions of americans have been hoping and praying for. >> president obama appeared at

the white house late last night to announce that osama bin laden has been killed and that the u.s. is now in possession of his body. >> with more details on this now, we're joined by t.j. winnik. good morning, t.j. >> rob and peggy, good morning to you both. four months before the ten-year anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks in washington, d.c. and here in new york city,s most wanted man in the world in the head of al qaeda, osama bin laden is dead. president obama announced that bin laden was killed sunday after a u.s.-led firefight in pakistan. >> reporter: osama bin laden and his al qaeda network became household names after the september 11th terrorist attacks. bin laden's face became synonymous with america's awakening to the growing danger of terrorism at home and he became public enemy number one. >> there is an old poster out west, that i recall that said "wanted, dead or alive." >> bin laden meantime was enjoying himself, praising those

who had carried out the attacks, saying, they were overjoyed when the first plane hit the building, so i said to them, be patient. bin laden's death has been a long time coming. u.s. forces bombed al qaeda's strongholds in afghanistan at the end of 2001. special forces raided hideouts in the mountains and across the country acting on realtime intelligence. afghan fighters reported, hearing bin laden's voice over a two-way radio urging his men to fight, then nothing. the search stalled as the war with iraq was heating up. but bin laden was never far from the headlines. sending audio and videotaped messages was an apparent proof that he was still alive and in control. the manhunt continued. repeatedly the trail ran cold around the remote border areas around pakistan and afghanistan. barack obama won the presidency in 2008, in part, by promising to pull u.s. troops out of iraq and turn the military's attention back towards afghanistan. >> we must take out osama bin

laden and his lieutenants if we have them in our sights. >> reporter: in the end, it was a promise president obama was able to keep. again, osama bin laden killed sunday by u.s. special operation forces in pakistan. about 25 other al qaeda operatives were killed at same time. good news, no u.s. soldiers were killed in that strike. we understand the u.s. is in custody of bin laden's body. he will be buried at sea. rob and pegy. >> yes, many people wondering, where is that body now? so good to know that. now, t.j., of course we're watching these celebrations unfold at the white house, also here in new york at ground zero. tell us about that. >> well, that's right. a spontaneous celebrations have brokenen out. as you mentioned in front of the white house. thousands of people have gathered, waving that american flags and chanting "usa, usa" also just singing national anthems. here in new york city, thousands of people gathering in times square and down at ground zero.

of course, on 9/11 nearly 3,000 people were killed by al qaeda operatives who hijacked those planes. i'm just going to read some tweets here, some realtime tweets about these celebrations. one of them says about ground zero, the crowds are audible from several blocks away. another reads the entire country sharing in this moment as crowds outside the white house and ground zero continues to grow. another tweet is that the fire department of new york that their bag pipes are at ground zero that the moment making their way through the crowd singing every american anthem at ground zero. champagne spraying in crowd. new york is pulling an all-nighter again. another tweeter saying, it is overwhelming to watch this spontaneous crowds in d.c. and ground zero chanting "usa, usa," what a joyous night. and i think that individual sums up this evening, this breaking news for millions of americans across this country. >> all right, t.j., thank you for that live report. and this is the day so many people didn't think would come.

a poll in the fall that only 37% of americans thought would do nothing, caught or found and here we are on this night that so many people didn't think that would be here. but justice has been done. >> ten-year anniversary coming up of the september 11th. nearly 3,000 people lost their lives. you think of how many families that affected across the country and it's really wonderful to see this happen, coming up upon the ten-year anniversary, it might have been a frustrating one without in news. >> we hope those families sleep a little bit better. never complete closure but maybe a better sleep tonight. >> absolutely. well after 9/11, the u.s. foc on finding solid, credible evidence to pr tha bin lad was in fact pentagon released a video that had been recovered in afghanistan. follow literally boasting about the plot. >> translator: we calculated that the events, the number of casualties from the enemy who

would b killed based on the position of the tower. we calculated that the floors that would be hit would be three or four floors. ives the most optimistic of them all. due to my experience in this field, i was thinking that the fire from the gas in the plane would melt the structure of the building and collapse the area where the plane hit and all the floors above it only. this is all that we had hoped f for. the difference between the first and the second plane hitting the towers was 20 minutes and the difference between the first plane and the plane that hit the pentagon was one hour. when americans were terrified thinking there was a coup. >> pretty tough to watch and of course one of the many attacks that he was a mastermind of. bin laden was killed not in a

desert hideaway or a cave. >> a whole other series of questions. >> sure. >> the u.s. was actually tipped off to his whereabouts last august. nick schifrin is joining thus morning from islamabad with reaction from there this morning. nick? >> reporter: good morning, rob, good morning peggy. the reaction here has been muted so far. it's only about 10:00 and while that raid happened about eight hours ago, people are just soaking it up. but what we have seen is the u.s. state department put out a worldwide caution for americans traveling abroad and for their embassies abroad. and we've seen very specifically the pakistani police go to the u.s. embassy in islamabad, just a couple of miles from me, and protect that embassy. the fear is that the people in pakistan will retaliate, militants specifically in pakistan could retaliate. and as a sign of that, pakistani intelligence officials who do say that they were involved in this operation are very clear to

distance themselves. not to own this operation. neither intelligence officials or government officials. because they fear that that backlash could come if they were seen as providing the intelligence or even the backup for this operation. >> and our question obviously, nick, this morning about how if he was being protected by pakistani officials those answers may come in the days ahead but over the years, how was bin laden viewed there in that country? >> reporter: well, pakistani officials insist, i should just say it first, that they were not protected bin laden. they did not know where he was and that speaks to something. that, yes, pakistan intelligence services have been accused of harboring afghan taliban certain militants who attack in afghanistan but pakistan has been helpful with the u.s. on al qaeda and what has happened here is that while the u.s. is extremely unpopular, both here and in afghanistan, i should say, it's important to note that bin laden himself, al qaeda, and even the taliban itself is not

popular here. is actually less popular know that the u.s. and i think that people along the border of pakistan and afghanistan are hoping that some of the u.s. attention that's been paid by the cia, by other agencies to trying to capture bin laden, to try to go after senior militants will now go to development and want jobs. and that, u.s. officials here say, pakistani officials here say, and people on the ground say is the ultimate solution to radical islam, that obviously bin laden led. the fact that he's dead will end that and people here hoping for more education, more jobs, more development. >> direct those finances to perhaps some more positive place. nick, what is being made of the fact that he was found in this mansion, sort of environment, when you think about the other places where the u.s. has been looking for bin laden? >> reporter: it's really important. because the cia, the drones have really focused on the border. this palace that was seven times

larger than any other building around it seems to have been created for hiding someone. perhaps for hiding bin laden was in a garrison town, only about two hours' drive from here. and that's an embarrassment for the pakistani intelligence service and for the government who says that it has not sheltered bin laden at all since 9/11. >> nick schifrin live from islamabad for us. thank you, nick. >> details still unfolding. right now we want to deviate just a little bit. update on your upcoming monday forecast. storms that will be coming through with hail, high winds, also a chance of tornados from houston to little rock, nashville and charleston, west virginia. showers from pittsburgh to rochester, new york and half foot of snow in the rockies and cascades. scattered showers in the pacific noevgt west. >> 78 in sacramento. 83 in phoenix. near 50 in minneapolis and 57 in chicago. 68 here in new yoc. 80s from atlanta to new orleans.

well there is much more ahead on "world news now" on this historic morning, including the president's unforgettable late-night announcement. it took a little while to get that announcement because the details were so forthcoming but it was amazing to hear the president to say that osama bin laden was captured. >> 11:30 eastern time last night and a young man who was just 4 when the 9/11 attacks happened put his lasting impressions to work. you're watching "world news now." we'll be right back. [ male announcer ] for the things you can't wash, freshen it with febreze. ♪ because febreze doesn't just cover up odors... it penetrates deep into fabrics to eliminate odors and leaves a light, fresh scent. febreze. it's a breath of fresh air.

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welc welcome back. for almost ten years, osama bin laden has been the most hunted person in the world. only to be heard from in rare taped messages al qaeda released. >> back in 1998, three years before 9/11, former abc news reporter and current member of the fbi, john miller sat down with bin laden in afghanistan for a very rare interview. >> reporter: osama bin laden is well hidden and heavily guarded by his own cadre of trained muslim fighters. moving between a series of caps in the afghan mountains he's issued a series of fatwas, religious decrease signed by muslim clerics that call for military jihad, holy war against

the united states. >> translator: we believe that the biggest thieves in the world are americans and the biggest terrorists on earth are the americans. the only way for us -- we do not differentiate between these in military uniforms and civilians to all targets in the fatwa. >> reporter: bin laden made his latest threats during our interview but then just days later he issued a new fatwa promising more violence if u.s. troops are not removed from saudi arabia. >> translator: you will leave when the bodies of american soldiers and civilians are sent in wooden boxes and coffins. that's when you will leave. >> reporter: it may be easy to make such threats. a man on a hilltop back by a few hundred moo hundred majahadin soldiers. bin laden is talking about terrorism. to find birns we had to travel to pakistan where eventually bin

laden's people made contact. we moved north through dusty towns to the afghan border just before sunset, bin laden's people let us on foot through the mountains and we crossed unseen into afghanistan. two days later, at 1:00 in the morning we met with bin laden. clearly for our benefit, there was a little chaushow of gunfir his men to meet him. a form cia official and an abc news consultant on terrorism and security matters. >> clearly he is a role model for a lot of islamic militants in the world today. i mean his personal story is so compelling to them. >> reporter: bin laden left his home in saudi arabia at the age of 19 to join the muslims fighting the soviet invasion of afghanistan. like many of the young fighters, he was religious and committed. unlike any other, he came from a saudi family that ran a construction empire worth $5 billion. bin laden's personal worth is

estimated at $200 million. >> yet he sacrifices all of that to take up what he believes is a religious duty, an abgation to expel the atheistic invaders of a muslim country. >> translator: we must use punishment to keep your evil away from us. muslim women and children. >> reporter: to understand bin laden's hatred for america, you have to put the u.s. in a context it is seen by many muslims. >> translator: americans impose themselves on anyone who believes in his religion and his rights. they accuse our children in palestine of being terrorists. those children who have no weapon and have not yet even reached maturity. >> reporter: we asked bin laden about somalia. the united states referred to the military operation in somalia as a rescue mission to prevent genocide by warring tribes but bin laden simply viewed it as another invasion of an islamic country. american intelligent agencies

believed it was bin laden. with rocket launchers to shoot down u.s. helicopters. 18 u.s. soldiers were killed. bin laden does not deny he had a role and revelled in america's retreat from somalia. >> translator: our people realize more than before that the american soldier is a paper tiger that are trying to defeat after a few blows. america forgot all about the hoop larkthe propaganda. >> reporter: and in saudi arabia another kind of warfare. in november 1995, a bomb exploded at the saudi national guard center in riyadh killing five americans. the bombers made videotaped confessions saying they were inspired by bin laden >> translator: we look at these young men as great heroes and martyrs who follow the steps of the prophet. please be upon him. we called and they answered. >> our special coverage of osama bin laden's death continues in just a moment. >> you're watching "world news now."

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>>ght i can r tonight i can report to the american people and to the world that the united states has conducted an operation that killed osama bin laden, the leader of al qaeda, and a terrorist who's responsible for the murder of thousands of innocent men, women, and children. >> that moment came shortly after 11:30 eastern time tonight. the long-awaited press conference, the president addressing the nation with that historic news after that operation today that killed osama bin laden. >> and everybody saw that news they opened up their doors and they left their homes to go down to ground zero and also celebrated in front of the white house but let's take a look at ground zero right now where people are celebrating. bringing out their american flags and just really marking the moment here to get this news

that bin laden is dead. construction is still going on as they are rebuilding of what will be the freedom towers. >> and also at times square, the celebration there, as a couple thousand people have poured out into the street there and you just have to i think take a moment and wonder if you were someone this, this country who lost someone in that attack, what they're feeling, what they're going through right now, has to be such a bittersweet moment that finally this mass murderer has been brought to justice. a yn bo cf13 t saiutve just one

and finally this half hour, ask anyone old enough and they will tell you exactly where they were and what they were doing the day those planes flew into the twin towers. >> and that goes for a young man who was just a kindergartner at the time. now he has released a movie documentary on his memories of september 11th, 2001. here's david muir. >> i remember just the crumbling of the towers like falling in on

themselves. >> reporter: brooke peters was just 4 on that day. his second day of kindergarten. he knew many the firemen who rushed to the towers. single mother, she would often take him to the firehouse so he would have role molds and on 9/11 it was one of those firefighters who offered a little boy the words he will never forget. >> go up to me, be a good man. >> reporter: he saw the towers fall that day. and for years struggled to make sense of it all. he decided to mack a documentary. interviewing other students and teachers who witnessed it, too. >> i remember being on the ground putting my head down to the ground saying a prayer the whole time. i was so afraid. >> reporter: he is now 14 and his documentary premiered this weekend, not far from ground zero. >> brooke peters. >> i have never really talked about it until i started interviewing kids. if they're able to talk about it, then i should be able to be more vocal about my experience

that day. >> reporter: brooke told us he wants to continue to make films, wants to be a filmmaker in fact, but he wants to be a firefighter too. david muir, abc news, new york. >> all right and take a look right now and of course the aftermath of this. let's look at times square right now, saying earlier people got the news and there's pictures right now of the crowds that are ac acssembling in times square. it's really a celebratory mood. >> excited crowd, it really is. did not stop there shortly after the announcement outsood of the white house as well. there was a massive celebration there as well. they say several thousand people gathered there and again singing songs. the national anthem. "proud to be an american." champagne. flags all of that. but finally ten years after 9/11, osama bin laden was killed yesterday. >> you can imagine what the president favorite lady are thinking being inside of the white house seeing these crowds

gathered outside. of course this was a big mission for the president as it has been for several other presidents. in fact george bush's just released a statement abo

this morning on th this morning on "world news now," a major breaking story spreading around the globe. ten years almost after 9/11, the military hunts down and kills osama bin laden. >> the president says, justice is done and his remarks attract jubilant crowds to the white house and also to new york's ground zero and times square. it's an historic day, monday, may 2nd. >> announcer: from abc news, this is "world news now." >> and good morning, everyone. i'm rob nelson. >> and i'm peggy bunker. the mission to kill bin laden was carried out by navy s.e.a.l.s in a city not far from

the capital of pakistan. >> president obama broke the news late last night to the world. t.j. winick has the details. >> reporter: osama bin laden and his al qaeda network became household names after the september 11th terrorist attacks. bin laden's face became synonymous with america's awakening to the growing danger of terrorism at home and he became public enemy number one. >> there is an old poster out west, as i recall, that said "wanted, dead or alive." >> bin laden meantime was enjoying himself, praising those who had carried out the attacks, saying, they were overjoyed when the first plane hit the building, so i said to them, be patient. bin laden's death has been a long time coming. u.s. forces bombed al qaeda's strongholds in afghanistan at the end of 2001. special forces raided hideouts in the mountains and across the country acting on realtime intelligence. afghan fighters reported, hearing bin laden's voice over a

two-way radio urging his men to fight, then nothing. the search stalled as the war with iraq was heating up. sending audio and videotaped messages as apparent proof that he was still alive and in control. the manhunt continued. repeatedly the trail ran cold around the remote border areas around pakistan and afghanistan. barack obama won the presidency in 2008, in part, by promising to pull u.s. troops out of iraq and turn the military's attention back towards afghanistan. >> we must take out osama bin laden and his lieutenants if we have them in our sights. >> reporter: in the end, it was a promise president obama was able to keep. t.j. winick, abc news, new york. >> and of course this news spreading around the globe in the last few hours. and thousands of americans are gathering around the nation to share their joy over bin laden's death. this was the scene here at times square here in new york as chanted and waved flags. >> american flags when are so

prevalent. at ground zero many were waving those flags and take pictures in the early morning hours. the group broke out into spontaneous jubilant cheers and song and including renditions of "i'm proud to be an american," the national anthem. this was president obama earlier at the white house. >> tonight i can report to the american people and to the world that the united states has conducted an operation that killed osama bin laden, the leader of al qaeda, and a terrorist who is responsible for the murder of thousands of innocent men, women, and children. let me say to the families who lost loved ones on 9/11 that we have never forgotten your loss nor wavered in our commitment to see that we do whatever it takes to prevent another attack on our shores. >> now here are the details as far as we have heard that they went down. high-level officials had meetings all day at the white house while waiting for the results of the operation. people inside the situation room describe the wait as incredibly

tense. mr. obama first learned of the tentative identification of bin laden's body in midafternoon. >> jake tapper has been at the white house as the story unfolded. >> they got the lead last august, and president obama said that he had told when he started as president, he told his cia director, leon panetta, that he wanted the capture or killing of osama bin laden to be the number one priority when it came to the fight against al qaeda, and then in august, they got a lead. they followed the thread through. he gave the order. and u.s. troops were told from our reporter on the ground, we're told it was an on the ground operation in this one mansion, this one compound, and it was a successful mission. no civilians were killed. no u.s. troops were killed and the u.s. has bin laden's body. there's jubilation here inside of the white house, outside the white house, tourists and others have gathered outside. they're singing the national anthem, chanting "usa." some of them are singing "na,

na, na, na, good-bye" to bin laden. point out, george, that 9/11 was bin laden's most devastating and deadly attack but other attacks linked to al qaeda including the 1998 bombings of the u.s. embassies in tanzania and kenya, where more than 200 individuals were killed and of course, the bombing of the "uss cole." i think 17 service members were killed in 2000, and those families have got to be experiencing the same thing that the families of the victims of 9/11 are feeling which is a great sense of closure, a great sense of relief, and a real happiness that the u.s. has not taken it's eye off of the ball throughout the bush administration and continues bot obama administration. >> the white house says bin laden's body is being treated in accordance with islamic practice and tradition. the intention is to bury bin laden at sea in order to avoid the creation of a shrine. >> and we're told u.s. officials are now considering showing pictures of bin laden's body in order to prove that the al qaeda leader is really dead.

>> and all of this, it is of course important to remember that the u.s. fight against terrorism is nowhere near over. just because bin laden is no longer here. about 100,000 americans are still fighting in afghanistan. >> and our mike boettcher knows many of them and he joins us now from kabul, afghanistan. and now tell us how the troops are reacting so far. we are to imagine it's very jubilant there. >> reporter: well, peggy, the reaction i've been getting from troops has come online to me. troops are happy to see this happen. they believe their sacrifice means something. and this war that has gone on ten years now. but i have to say that i've just been in contact with a top u.s. officer here who tells me the reaction from afghanistan will be muted. nothing official is planned. after all, a war is still being waged here. and they do not want to ignite any protests from afghans here in this country by showing celebrations of u.s. troops on bases.

so they're going to keep it low-key, because this war is going on. as of may 1st, which was yesterday, the taliban announced that they were beginning their spring offensive. this will take the form most likely of many, many suicide bombers around the country. south of the capital yesterday, there was a report of a 12-year-old boy who detonated a suicide vest. killing several people. that was south of kabul. there had been reports from pakistan and intelligence reports here that 350, at least, suicide bombers had been trained in pakistan to unleash their attacks here against u.s. forces, civilian targets as well, civilians who support the afghan government, u.s.-supported government here. so look for the reaction to remain muted here because we are in high alert for any sort of retaliation. >> sure, understandably. real quick here. we don't want to run out of

time. we know that you've been on the front lines there, so many soldiers have, men and women. this has got to be a huge morale boost for them. as you said, it will be modest but this has got to give them a big boost. >> reporter: absolutely. my son carlos and i have been embedded since september in all sections of afghanistan. two days ago i was on the pakistan border in kunar province. we took a lot of casualties up there, the u.s. troops did and the unit i was covering but they had set the taliban back in this region in that area. and i can tell you, i know how they're reacting. they are leaving the country right now to be replaced by another unit, and i am sure they are incredibly happy about this news. >> absolutely. thank you, mike, for that live report. appreciate that. and again, important to remember here, osama may be killed now but there are still many, many men behind him who want to do harm to this country so this is

a big step but it's not over. it's just one chapter that's over. all right when come back. this morning the hunt of osama bin laden has been spent over many, many years. >> the jubilation upon his death. filling you in on that coming up after this. if your racing thoughts keep you awake... sleep is here, on the wings of lunesta. and if you wake up often in the middle of the night... rest is here, on the wings of lunesta. lunesta helps you fall asleep and stay asleep, so you can wake up feeling rested. when taking lunesta, don't drive or operate machinery until you feel fully awake. walking, eating, driving, or engaging in other activities while asleep, without remembering it the next day, have been reported. abnormal behaviors may include aggressiveness, agitation,

hallucinations or confusion. in depressed patients, worsening of depression, including risk of suicide, may occur. alcohol may increase these risks. allergic reactions, such as tongue or throat swelling, occur rarely and may be fatal. side effects may include unpleasant taste, headache, dizziness and morning drowsiness. ask your doctor if lunesta is right for you. get lunesta for a $0 co-pay at lunesta.com. sleep well, on the wings of lunesta. here would you go next if you had a hoveround power chair? the statue of liberty? the grand canyon? it's all possible ith a hoveround., tom: hi i'm tom kruse, inventor rand founder of hoveround., when we say you're free to see the world, we mean it. call today and get a free overound information kit,

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celebrations at news. for nearly ten years osama bin laden was the most wanted man in the entire world but hunt for him started before the horrible events of september 11th. >> and before this successful mission that killed the al qaeda leader, the u.s. tried many times before to assassinate him. here more is martha raddatz. she has details of what ended up being a ten-year and very painstaking pursuit of this mass murderer. >> reporter: in the three years before september 11th, the u.s. tried repeatedly to kill bin laden. august 1998, the clinton

administration sencruise missiles to attack afghan terrorist training camps two days after two u.s. embassies were in bombed in africa. but it took the ship-fired missiles hours to strike the training camps. and by the time they did, bin laden had already left. the attack had an unintended side effect. escaping the u.s. onslaught only enhanced bin laden's reputation among terrorists. february 1999, bin laden is sighted at a desert training camp in helmand province, afghanistan. he remained there for more than a week. but there was a hunting camp nearby used by officials of united arab emirates, a u.s. ally. >> policymakers were concerned about the danger that a strike might kill an emirati prince or other senior officials who might be with bin laden or close by. >> reporter: there was another sighting and another missed

opportunity that spring. clinton administration officials defended the decision to hold back. >> if we're going to kill people, innocent people, as well as carrying out this operation, let's be as sure as we can that we've got the right target, the right information and minimize, if we can, killing innocent people. >> reporter: during this period the u.s. repeatedly slipped cia agents and military special operations teams into afghanistan. agents set up electronic surveillance of roads and villages which was still active just days before september 11th. but al qaeda members stayed one step ahead and used technology to their advantage. monitoring internet chat rooms and anonymous e-mails became part of an ongoing, highly sensitive intelligence operation. >> what we have to strive is to be as innovative and as creative as the terrorists are. almost to think out of the box. >> reporter: the hunt for bin laden became america's top priority the day after 9/11.

>> there is an old poster out west, as i recall, that said "wanted, dead or alive." >> reporter: u.s.-led forces began months of withering air and ground assaults at al qaeda's strongholds in afghanistan. special forces spread throughout the country, acting on realtime intelligence. osama bin laden was a man on the run. mid-december, tora bora, afghan fighters reported hearing bin laden's voice over a two-way radio. urging his men to fight. the u.s. seemed certain that bin laden was cornered. but when u.s., afghan, and british troops finally fought their way to the caves of tora bora, they'd found loads of ammunition, bags of al qaeda documents, but they did not find bin laden. u.s. intelligence officials said bin laden and his top people

were allowed to slip away by many of the same warlords the u.s. was paying to kill him. bin laden was apparently paying more. >> i mean, people have been bribing people in afghanistan for centuries. >> reporter: march 2002, gardez, afghanistan. american special forces moved in on what they believed would be a small pocket of al qaeda fighters. they were met with an ambush. the battle became the fiercest resistance the u.s. forces faced during the war. when it was over, no bin laden. in the years since, he's believed to have moved back and forth over the remote border between afghanistan and pakistan. the u.s. dropped leaflets to make sure local villagers knew about the $25 million reward, but bin laden was hiding among friends. >> osama, if he's there, would

be there as a guest. and the code of the people there is that if a guest is living with them, they will protect him with their lives. >> reporter: even with today's news, the war on terrorism is not over. the terrorist organization bin laden created is designed to survive even if he does not. martha raddatz, abc news. >> and someone out there may be asking how do we know that this is osama bin laden here. fascinating tidbit here, his sister was in a boston hospital suffering from cancer. when she died they subpoenaed her brain and that's what they used to check the dna to make sure that it was really osama bin laden. >> because the dna has been checked and confirmed that this is in fact him and talk and saying we want to see the proof. >> very interesting right now. we want to take a look at ground zero. we'll be talking about that coming up in a moment. this is a place where many people are celebrating now. take a look at this.

just moments ago. people have scaled this light post with the american flag. a very prevalent sign all around ground zero after 9/11. >> absolutely, absolutely. a scene of just utter despair almost ten years ago. a scene of just utter despair almost ten years ago. and now tonight a spot ♪ [male e announcer] for america's wounded warriors, sometimes coming home can be a battle in itself. [crowd cheers] the uso provides eve american a wato support our wounded warriors and their families. join us. visit uso.org to learn how you can make a difference in their lives. what? it's good to be backck. the uso. until every one comes home. [ woman ] sam begged and pleaded... so i sent him to camp. we'd earned lots of points with our new citi thankyou card... and i put them to good use. he told me about his bunkmates, and how he signs up for every activity.

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that solemn memorial became the center of celebration. chris cuomo was there this morning. >> reporter: the cars have disheveled the streets down here. kind of surrendering to the moment. the local police are telling me it's not worth trying to clear people out. they need to have this moment. there are now about 3,000, 4,000 people that are filling the streets down here at church and vc. one of the most famous corners of the old world trade center. and you're seeing the whole range here. there are victims' families who are come down, people who are on the phone, they're crying. they're calling people to come down here and gather. you're hearing things like "we're all family" tonight. yes, you are hearing that reserved hostility towards osama bin laden and a lot of the ugliness that goes along with that. that feeling that there has been justice but there is not nearly not as much of that as the celebration.

right now i'm look at a dozen flags waving. it's not unlike -- it's as one distant family told me. everything become anew because of this. that said it's still early. all of these people seem to be on the phone telling people to come here. the question is, what if he comes later on? but right now, there's a lot of love. everybody feels like they were a victim of 9/11. everybody knows somebody who was lost and i'm running into people here in the crowd who i know. and we share people in common who we lost and people like that, this was the moment that has been very long in the coming. >> and that's chris cuomo saying there most everybody feels like they are a victim of 9/11. really, every time you go through the airport checkpoint you feel like a victim but to kind of put it into numbers. the number of people who lost a spouse or partner in the attack, 1,600 in '09. the estimated number of children who loss's a parent, 3,051. >> it's amazing to see that

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well, finally there's n we, finally there's well, finally there's no question nat death of osama bin laden gives closure to the friends and family of the almost 3,000 people killed on 9/11. >> deborah burlingame is the sister of charles burlingame. he was the pilot of the hijacked american airlines flight 77. that was flown into the pentagon. and as you can imagine, she has been waiting for this day for ten years. and here's what she told abc news after she learned of bin laden's death. >> i got the call from my brother brad, who was the person who called me on the morning of 9/11, to tell me that our brother chick had been killed in his airplane crashing into the pentagon. and so it was very fitting that i get this call from brad tonight. and i -- i have a million questions. because you know for the families, this has been -- this

man and his minions have haunted us for almost the last ten years, and so this -- it's true, this is a close of a very big chapter but we are worried going forward. we worry because al qaeda has metastasized and so many al qaeda affiliates. tonight the way i rooted for the president on that day because we are one country and i think that our military deserves -- deserve the credit that he gave them tonight. i was very happy to hear him say that. because these guys have wanted him so bad. i mean, i'm talking about bin laden. and so i was thrilled that they could do an up close and personal attack rather than getting him from the skies with a predator. the american people have been magnificent through this. they've been very, very supportive. they've never forgotten 9/11.

and so i wish i were there with them. >> usa! usa! usa! usa! usa! usa! usa! usa! usa! >> pretty much dominated my life. all of these national security issues. and we're not out of the woods but this is really big. because one of my brothers called me tonight. i have two other brothers. and he said, deborah, you know i told you i wasn't going to take my american flag down until they caught osama bin laden. and i said, mark, leave it up. don't take it down until every last american servicemen and woman has come home. >> nothing will ever bring their loved ones back but certainly this is such a pivotal point, over 1000 babi are born

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